Toronto, Ontario (December 26, 2002): Aspiring race driver Ward Imrie
of Winnipeg, Manitoba, arrived home this week with US$50,000 towards
next year's racing budget after finishing third in the Barber-CART
(Championship Auto Racing Teams) Scholarship Runoff. The former kart
racer who just turned twenty, is hoping to compete in the Barber-Dodge
Pro Series in 2003 and says his prize will make up about one-third of
the budget.

The competition saw invited drivers head to Sebring International
Raceway in Florida where the crop of young hopefuls were scrutinized
for everything from racing skills to public speaking abilities. The
highlight of the runoff came when the drivers climbed into Barber-Dodge
Pro cars and took them out on the famous Sebring circuit.

On a wet, but trying track, drivers were observed and examined as
they were put through a series of challenging exercises. The asphalt
gradually dried and the speeds increased. Imrie was running well,
posting the second-quickest lap times and comfortably outpacing third
place. Then, his car suffered transmission problems. He'd lost third
gear. Following a precautionary pitstop, he was given the okay to
continue, but without third gear it was tough going.

"It was very difficult because I had to skip third gear three times a
lap," reported Imrie. "It really hurt me through an 'S' section where
I had to use second (gear) instead of third. My lap times suffered,
but not as much as I expected. Unfortunately, with the track drying,
everyone else got quicker at the end of the session and I ended up fifth
fastest."

The panel of judges had much to weigh and, after careful consideration,
Imrie was awarded third place, behind Colin Fleming of North Hills,
California, and Scott Poirer of Deerfield Beach, Florida. Fleming and
Poirer won U$100,000 and US$70,000 respectively to put toward a campaign
in the 2003 Barber-Dodge Pro Series.

Imrie was disappointed about his bad luck, but took it in stride
acknowledging, "It's part of the sport, sometimes things happen that
are out of your control. If you can't accept that you'll drive yourself
crazy.

"I really appreciate having the opportunity to participate in this
runoff," he continued, "And I would like to thank everyone from Skip
Barber, Dodge, Michelin, and Quaker State for making this event happen.
I also want to thank my family for all their effort and support. Now
its off to the drawing board to find the other two-thirds of the budget
needed to race next year!"